This kitchen project has been going through my mind for over a year. I have sketched, used kitchen apps, and talked with people from all over trying to decide just how I wanted to make my kitchen look different but not spend a lot of cash. Especially since I stay home with the kiddos. Which means that I must do most of the labor myself if I want to make the changes. The kitchen is such a important room in the house so I have really tried to take my time in making decisions, which I'm still not done yet. So yes, some of the things on the walls dont' match, I have ripped the tile off the back splash ( wow, can you just say huge holes!) and its nowhere near done. So for today I'm only talking about the island cause that's all that's finished right now.
Let me show you how I tore the tile off of the bottom of the island.
We had regular tile under the front side of the island and laminate on top.
I started with using a flat head screw driver and hammer to loosen the tile which I was able to reuse these tile in a area outside that was always muddy and now we have tile to step on at the dog lot. (double use, score!)
Of course I always have helpers when we do a job. Isaiah working hard at removing the grout.
Once I removed it I was able to lightly sand it and then start adding the plywood that I had cut in 5 in planks. These were a little wider than the original wall because I wanted a wide plank. I also wasn't going to do the distressed look on this. I used pennies to place in between each plank so it would look like original ship lap was there.
I used a nail gun and a regular circular saw to cut and measure all the boards and attach them to the island except the front.
The front was a little different. I have hickory cabinets and wanted to have a white wash finish but I also wanted the hickory to show through. You typically don't see hickory cabinets whitewashed but I said hey, I will give it a try. So I took all the doors off the hinges.
Please ignore all the pots and pans, I am trying to take the pots off my pot rack that hangs to keep the dust off while I work so they were all crammed in these cabinets. (yuck)
We centered the top on the bar. This was probably the hardest part, because if your floor is not level in all aspects you have to scoot the top around until you make sure all the edges are equal. You shouldn't try to do this by yourself. It helps to have a second eye.
We purchased a rotary dremel tool at Lowes to help cut the top. We used my gas range top as a template and then attacked painters tape to the top because the man at Wall Lumber said this will help with top not splintering. We both took turns cutting because this wood was almost 2"s thick and the tool does get hot. Once we made pretty good size starting points we went with saws all to finish cutting. (I don't suggest this) But after I had cut one side and he had cut the other we could get in with the saw and move much faster. He is a really steady hand with it cause he uses it daily in his taxidermy shop, but typically you would just use a jigsaw and make the straight cuts.
We were very tickled with how it turned out! Now what are we gonna jump on next?
We had regular tile under the front side of the island and laminate on top.
Once I removed it I was able to lightly sand it and then start adding the plywood that I had cut in 5 in planks. These were a little wider than the original wall because I wanted a wide plank. I also wasn't going to do the distressed look on this. I used pennies to place in between each plank so it would look like original ship lap was there.
The front was a little different. I have hickory cabinets and wanted to have a white wash finish but I also wanted the hickory to show through. You typically don't see hickory cabinets whitewashed but I said hey, I will give it a try. So I took all the doors off the hinges.
Please ignore all the pots and pans, I am trying to take the pots off my pot rack that hangs to keep the dust off while I work so they were all crammed in these cabinets. (yuck)
Next I took the doors outside and lightly sanded them so that the stain would adhere. Once I had them sanded I used some tacky cloth from Lowes to remove all the dust. Once they were clean, I started staining them with White Wash pickling stain from Lowes. I lightly covered them with a 2 dollar brush. Once they were dry (after a few hours) I lightly sanded them again to give them a finished look. This picture will be in the end with the top attached.
Next I went to a awesome lumber yard in Mayodan, NC called Wall Lumber
There they spent a gracious amount of time talking with me and helping me to pick out the exact wood that I wanted for my top! I was so grateful because I knew once I bought this huge heavy piece of wood there was no going back. So I ordered it and Bam in like 30 days it was ready for pick up.
I decided to go with Ambrosia Maple. I thought it was beautiful. I also had 2 legs cut from regular maple to help the top be very secure.
We centered the top on the bar. This was probably the hardest part, because if your floor is not level in all aspects you have to scoot the top around until you make sure all the edges are equal. You shouldn't try to do this by yourself. It helps to have a second eye. 
We purchased a rotary dremel tool at Lowes to help cut the top. We used my gas range top as a template and then attacked painters tape to the top because the man at Wall Lumber said this will help with top not splintering. We both took turns cutting because this wood was almost 2"s thick and the tool does get hot. Once we made pretty good size starting points we went with saws all to finish cutting. (I don't suggest this) But after I had cut one side and he had cut the other we could get in with the saw and move much faster. He is a really steady hand with it cause he uses it daily in his taxidermy shop, but typically you would just use a jigsaw and make the straight cuts. 
Once the whole was finished, we cleaned up. I added the trim from Lowe's to the edges with the nail gun to give it a finished look. You can get as wide with the trim as you like but I chose a inch wide trim and put it on each corner on both sides to make it looked more finished. I took a soft cloth and wiped over the front with Boiled Linseed Oil to Seal the cabinets. I let that dry overnight. I also used Boos Block Butcher block cream on my top and let that sit over night. Once you get up and wipe it down it's read to use.
We were very tickled with how it turned out! Now what are we gonna jump on next?
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